United Cleaning Services began in 2005, offering commercial contract cleaning. As they grew, they began to specialize in apartment buildings, cleaning the communal areas. This was extended to offering a reach and wash window cleaning service to these buildings.

​As most apartment blocks have grounds that need looking after, it became apparent that UCS could add another string to their bow. After investing in various pieces of grounds maintenance equipment, and acquiring some knowledge around plants and shrubs, they were able to offer Grounds Maintenance to those apartment block customers. So already UCS were able to offer services that would normally have required separate contractors. Property management companies were really happy that someone was not only going to offer a quality, reliable service, but also making their administration easier.

A little while later, UCS were being asked about carrying out minor property maintenance jobs in these properties. So they now offer light bulb replacement, smoke alarm battery replacement, door kick and finger plate replacement, repairing or replacing stair cappings and scuff mark removal.

Wipe over paintwork with an IPA solution to remove any oils from polishing etc

Apply Liquid Elements Eco Shield ceramic sealant to paintwork and buff off according to manufacturer instructions

Apply sealant to alloy wheels and glass if applicable, and buff off

Apply a long-term dressing to any trim, and dress tyres

We also protected the leather sections of the interior with Roborne's Leather Guard. This will protect the leather from numerous stains, and is backed up by a 5 year warranty.

​We then finished off the vehicle, and it was ready for the customer to collect:

Why do we use a ceramic sealant on the paintwork? Ceramic sealants offer a more hard-wearing protection option than that offered by the dealerships. Ceramic sealants are a semi-permanent coating that bcomes a second clear-coat. They are very glossy, and extremely hydrophobic. If you like to look after your car yourself, washing becomes so much easier.

We were asked to carry out a New Car Protection on their new purchase, an Audi A3 Convertible.

The latest A3 Convertible is a much more attractive beast than it's predecessors, as they looked more like a VW Golf Converitble, which as they share platforms etc is no surprise. However, the latest incarnation has set itself further away from the Golf shape by using the saloon A3 bodystyle.

This was the vehicle on arrival:

So when a dealer sells a paint protection system, this is the process used:

Wash vehicle

Dry Vehicle

Apply sealant

Buff off sealant

The problem here is that there is no decontamination of the paintwork. This means the sealant can't bond properly, hence won't protect for very long at all. We've seen numerous dealer protected vehicles where the protection has failed within three months, often less.

By contrast, this is the process that we go through for a New Car Protection:

We were called by a new customer near Minehead to carry out a Full Valet on his 1968 MGC Roadster.

This was the car on our arrival:

So we set about carrying out the following work:

Floor mats, carpets and boot area (not vans) vacuumed and shampooed

Vinyl seats cleaned.

Dash surfaces and interior plastics cleaned and dressed

Insides of windows cleaned

Entire vehicle exterior pre-washed, washed, rinsed and dried.

Wheels cleaned

Polished by hand with a pre-wax cleanser to enhance finish and prepare the paintwork for protection.

Brightwork polished with a dedicated metal polish.

A quality wax applied to the paintwork and brightwork

Tyres dressed to restore their appearance

Exterior windows treated with glass polish

We would have liked to have done more to improve the car, but that wasn't an option on this occasion. However, as you can see, we made quite a difference to the look of the car.

If you'd like to see your car improved with one of our valeting services, please contact us

]]>Sun, 12 Feb 2017 19:23:04 GMThttp://www.shinemyride.co.uk/blog/mobile-car-valeting-near-ilminster-audi-a6We were called by a new customer near Ilminster to carry out a Full Valet on his 2016 Audi A6 estate.

We were greeted with this on arrival:

We had to do three pre-washes on the vehicle before we felt it was safe to wash it.

Two coats of titanium sealant applied to add extra gloss, and protection

Tyres and trim dressed to restore their appearance

Exterior windows treated with glass polish

So the two of us spent seven hours going through this vehicle, inside and out. The results can be seen in the following pictures:​

And also the interior pictures:

A lot of time was spent bringing this vehicle back to life. We could have spent another few hours on it to be truthful.

​The best way to demonstrate the difference achieved is to have before and after shots, which are in the following slideshow:

If you'd like your vehicle to have this standard of care, please go to our Contact page, and fill in the enquiry form.

]]>Thu, 31 Dec 2015 14:08:46 GMThttp://www.shinemyride.co.uk/blog/december-31st-2015Thanks for all the support in 2015

As 2015 draw's to a close, I wanted to take the opportunity to say a few things.Firstly, I want to thank my wife Dawn for all her support, enabling me to do what I do. I'd also like to thank my parents John and Emilia Claydon for their support.Thankyou also to the regular customers of Shine My Ride, some of whom have become friends. Thankyou to everyone that has used SMR during 2015, and look forward to seeing you again in 2016.Thankyou to Dave McDevitt at UK Car Valeting Directory for the hard work he has put into promoting our listing on the directory.To anyone who has been disappointed by SMR, I am very sorry, and if you haven't already given us the opportunity to rectify the situation, I would ask you again to allow us to do that.Now that the work carried out is 100% in my hands, I will continue to work hard to exceed customer's expectations. We get lots of positive feedback, and that's what counts for us.To those that follow what we do, thankyou. Feel free to share what you see so that others get to know about Shine My Ride.

We are fully booked for January, and quite a few dates in February are already booked.

So if you have any downtime left, hope you enjoy it, see you next yearAll the BestChris

Polished by hand to enhance finish and sealant and wax applied to add protection

Tyres and trim dressed to restore their appearance

Exterior windows treated with glass polish

Due to the rain we had to put a gazebo up, but we succeeded in making the vehicle look much better:

We treat every car we valet with the utmost care, using safe methods and quality products to ensure the best possible result.

]]>Fri, 20 Nov 2015 23:36:41 GMThttp://www.shinemyride.co.uk/blog/valeting-for-specialist-residential-care-home-vehiclesIf you are a specialist care facility, you likely have vehicles that are used for transporting residents. That may be people carriers, also known as MPV's, or wheelchair accessible vehicles.

We are fully aware of some of the issues that vehicles used in these scenarios can have, and have encountered them before, such as repeated urination etc. We aren't one of those companies that will give you a hard time about the problems your vehicles may have.

We always deal with every enquiry politely, regardless of the circumstances. Tell us of any specific problems with your vehicles, and we help you as much as we can. You won't encounter anyone at Shine My Ride that doesn't deal with you in a friendly and efficient manner.

We've heard many times about other valeting companies in Somerset that are rude, often even offensive when dealing with enquiries of this nature. This is not acceptable in our view.

Rest assured, Shine My Ride is not like other valeting companies.

Call us on 01278 431680 or 07905 376377 to discuss your valeting requirements